KFC (Korean Fried Chicken)

Korean chicken marinated in gochujang sauce. Gochujang (Korean: 고추장), is a savory, spicy, and pungent fermented Korean condiment made from red chili, glutinous rice, fermented soybeans, and salt. Traditionally, it has been naturally fermented over years in large earthen pots outdoors, more often on an elevated stone platform, called jangdokda in the backyard.

According to the Jeungbo Sarim gyeongje (1765), gochujang was made by adding powdered red chili peppers and glutinous rice powder to soybean paste and aging this paste under the sun. This recipe is similar to the recipe used today to make gochujang.

Sunchang County is famous for their gochujang. Gochujang is strongly rooted in traditional daily life in Korea. Both commoners and nobles used gochujang as an indispensable source of food and nutrition. China and Japan, the countries with which Korea has historically shared the most culture and trade, do not include gochujang in their traditional cuisines.

What you need:

• Chicken legs or wings
• Oil
• 3/4 cup flour
• 1 1tbsp cornstarch 
• salt & pepper
• 4 tbsp Gochujang
• 1 tbsp honey
• 2 1/2 tbsp Mirin (sweet vinegar)
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 4 cloves garlic
• small piece of ginger (1 cm)
• 2 tbsp chopped sspring onions
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds
• 2 tbsp chopped jalapeno and red chile pepper

How to prepare it:

1. Mix the flour, cornstarch, and 3/4 cup water. Season the batter with some salt and pepper.
2. Chop all the garnishes- jalapeno, red chile pepper, and scallions
3. Mix the gochujang, honey, mirin, soy sauce, and sesame oil. Make it smooth, if necessairy add some extra mirin to thin the sauce out. It is best just running out of the bowl when pouring. Mince the garlic and add to the sauce. Finely grate the ginger and add to the sauce.
4. Heat large wok with the canola oil. Check that the oil is hot enough by dropping a tiny bit of bread into the wok.
5. Drop in the chicken at a time and fry for about 5 min. Drain the chicken and leave to cool down a bit.
6. Add the red sauce to the chicken and marinate it for about 2 hours.
7. Preheat the oven at 200 C. Put the chicken in the oven for 20-30 minutes and turn the legs after 10-15 minutes.
8. Garnish with the scallions, peppers, and sesame seeds.